GOLF: Tiger Woods back at TPC Boston for 1st time since 2013

By Bill Doyle The Worcester Telegram & Gazette

Thursday

Aug 30, 2018 at 6:05 PM

Woods playing in final Dell Technologies Championship

NORTON – Tiger Woods didn’t know what to expect.

After back troubles sidelined him for the entire 2016 golf season and limited him to only one event in 2017, he returned to the PGA Tour in January in an attempt to recapture the magic that made him the game’s best player for so many years.

“The hardest part is I didn't have any inkling of what this year might be,” he said Thursday before he played in the pro-am at the Dell Technologies Championship, the second stop in the FedEx playoffs. “Normally if I have a good offseason or a good practice or feel healthy I can reasonably expect what might happen the following year. This year was a complete unknown. I didn't know if I was going to play, I didn't know how many events I was going to play, what swing I was going to use. I didn't know any of these things. And a lot of adjustments on the fly.”

Most golfers would love to experience the level of success that Woods has this year. While making 13-of-15 cuts, Woods has not won, but he’s finished in the top 10 five times and in the top 25 nine times. He’s still hasn’t won a major championship since the U.S. Open in 2008, but he finished second in the PGA Championship and tied for sixth in the British Open. He ranks 19th on the PGA Tour money list with $3.4 million and he’s 11th in U.S. Ryder Cup points and seems a lock to be one of Jim Furyk’s captain’s picks on Tuesday.

“Competing at this level, I would have taken this in a heartbeat,” Woods said as sweat poured down his face while he addressed a large contingent of media on a hot, humid morning. “You have a chance to win two major championships, you'll be in the playoffs, and you're right there to be on the Ryder Cup team. All of these things at the beginning of the year were all unknowns. As I said, it's been one of my best years as a whole.”

Woods, 42, will play at TPC Boston for the first time since 2013 and he’s scheduled to begin on the 10th tee at 8:51 a.m. Friday in a threesome with Marc Leishman and Chez Reavie. A large billboard of Woods and Rory McIlroy greets fans as they drive up Arnold Palmer Boulevard to the course.

This tournament used to benefit Woods’ foundation so he was a regular participant before his back acted up. He won here in 2006 and tied for second twice, behind Vijay Singh in 2004 and behind Phil Mickelson in 2007.

“In general,” Woods said, “it sets up for a guy who hits it long and high and I’ve done that pretty much my whole golf career. Especially when this golf course gets firm and the greens get harder, the high ball hitter has an advantage.”

McIlroy, who has won twice at TPC Boston, remembers having lunch with Woods following his back surgery about a year and half ago.

“He wasn’t swinging,” McIlroy said, “he wasn’t playing. He just started to walk again. To think of where he was then to now and it’s just over a year, it’s incredible. I’ve kept saying this and I’ve been consistent with this, everyone just needs to give him time because you’re not going to be the same person or player after four back surgeries and everything he’s dealt with.”

Woods’ return coincides with the PGA Tour ending its 16-year run as an annual Labor Day weekend event. The tour will not stop at TPC Boston next year when the FedExCup playoffs will be reduced from four events to three and start earlier to avoid competing with the NFL. The tour plans to rotate The Northern Trust, which will continue to be the first playoff stop, between the New York area and TPC Boston.

“Well, at least we have a future,” Woods said, “at least we're coming back. The people here always supported this event. They come out in droves and they're loud. And it's been fun. I've had some nice runs here where I've played well and they've gotten into it. You can hear roars go up around this golf course. I know it's spread out, but you can hear the echoes, so it's really neat. It's a shame we aren't coming here annually. But I guess biennially isn't bad.”

Actually, the tour has committed to coming back here only in 2020 during the first week of August with the top 125 players and Northern Trust as title sponsor. Another return is not guaranteed because Northern Trust’s sponsorship deal will be expired by 2022.

“It's better than nothing,” Woods said.

At the Masters, Woods played a practice round with U.S. Mid-Amateur champion Matt Parziale, who took a leave of absence this year from his job as a Brockton firefighter.

“He was great,” Woods said. “Super nice. He and his dad were talking about what they do for a living, looking at their shifts, how many days on, how many days off. And he took the summer to play golf and enjoy it. And hats off to him. He puts his life on the line for his community and I think that he's earned the right to go out and play a little golf this summer and enjoy it.”

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